In car-couplings



E. RUSSELL;

Car Coupling.-

Patented Dec. I, 1868.

I'n/U enter Witnesses EPITRIAM RUSSELL, OF \VAYNESBURG, ASSIGNOR TOHIMSELF ANl) lllCY- NAltl) YOS'I, OF HONEY BROOK, PENNSYLVANIA.

IMFRZVE 'FEi-INT lN CAR-COUPLINGS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. @LWKS, dated December1, 1868.

To all whom it may concern:

lle it known that I, EPHRIAM ltUs'SELL, of \Vaynesburg, in the county ofChester and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and usefulCoupling for ltailroadllars; and I do hereby declare that the followingis a full, clear, and exact description of the construction andoperation of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,makin g a part of this specification, in which Figure 1 is a side viewof the said coupling as when applied to connect the usual drawheads oftwo cars; Fig. 2, a sectional plan view of the same below the dottedline 02 w of Fig. 1; and Fig. 3, a transverse section of the couplingdetached, cut on the dotted line 90 g of Fig. 1, like letters ofrelbrcnce indicating the same parts when in the different figures.

The object of my invention is to a-tford a simply-constructed portablecoupling for railroad-cars, whereby the conductor or operator can eitherconnect or disconnect the cars with perfect facility and safety whilestanding on the platform of either car, or remove and carry away thesaid coupling for safe keeping, as occasion may require. My inventionconsists, substantially as hereinafter described, of an open link and anattached sliding handle, whereby, when the device is held up by the saidhandle, the free ends of the link-bar can be readily dropped intorespective receivingslots provided for them in the draw-heads of any twocars nearly in contact, so as to securely connect the cars together, orbe simply lifted up out of said slots so as to disconnect the said carswhile the operator is standin g safely on the platform of either car.

Referring to the dr. wings, A is the open link; 13, the sliding handle;and G G, the respective draw-heads of two cars. The link A is intendedto be made of wroughtdron, and sufliciently thick and strong to sustainitself during the sudden jerks as well as the steady strains to whichcar-couplin gs are subject. Through the upper or closed side of the linkA an oblong slot or through-hole, a, is made, which is equal to or alittle greater in length and breadth than the width and thickness of thesliding part of the handle I which fits loosely in it. The distanceapart of the two ends a" a of the open link A is a little greater thanthe width of the said sliding part of the handle 13 at its lower end, sothat.

the latter may pass easily or freely between them. (See Fig. 1.) Thesliding handle B is also made of wrought-iron, and has a handhole, I),through its upper or head end, and is provided with projecting shouldersI) b, by which it rests upon the upper or slotted side of the link A,while its lower end extends down between and to the lower sides of thefree ends a a of the said link A, leaving an open space, (I, betweeneach inside end of the link A and the sliding part of the handle l3.(See Figs. 1 and 3.) There is a stud, b, on each side of the lower endof B, which provents the said slide from being drawn entirely out of thelink A.

The draw-heads may be made in the usual form but, instead of the roundhole heretofore required for a bolt, an oblong slot, 0, is made downthrough each, and of suflicicnt length and width to allow the curvedends of the link A to drop simultaneously and freely down through themin applying the coupling, and so that the lower end of the sliding partof the handle B will afterward be permitted to drop down between the twodraw-heals U 0. (See Fig.1.)

The application, removal, and mode of operation of this coupling arevery simple. The conductor or operator, standing upon the platform ofeither car and holding the coupling by its handle B, simultaneouslyenters both ends of the open link A into the respective slots 0 c" ofthe draw-heads of the two cars as the latter come together, and letsthem drop into the said slots 0 0, thus coupling the cars together, and,as they are immediately drawn a little way apart, the sliding handle Bdrops downward between the ends of the two heads 0 O, and thus confinesthe link properly or loosely in place, as shown in. Fig. 1. In detachingthe cars the operator raises the sliding handle 13, and thereby the linkA, and thus removes the coupling. -In operation the draw-heads (l G areheld together loosely by the link A, and at the same time kept fromabutting together with each other by the sliding handle B, which at thesame time allows them sullicient freeness of motion for turning curvesor irregularities in the rail-track.

This is a very simple and reliable coupling for cars, can be applied'anddetached with facility and without any risking of the life or limbs ofthe conductor or operator, and, moreover, can be readily removed andlocked up in, the standingcar-a ver important matter to railroad men, asthe coupling-links and bolts now in use are often stolen or carried oilby thieves.

Having thus fully described my invention, What I claim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

The open l nk A and. he sliding handle I), in combination with a slotteddraw-head, all constr e-"2d '1 operating together substantially as andfor the purpose described.

' EPHRIAM RUSSELL.

\Vitnesses:

BENJ. MomsoN, \VB 1\'[ORTON, 1%. W. \loRToN.

